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Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Pahinga Riverside Retreat House: the name says the Rest

To mention its name and say that this is a place where you
can forget your stressful urban life and drown your worries in the chorus of
rustling bamboo leaves, singing birds and flowing river in a single sentence
would be utterly redundant. So, we won’t.

Instead, we’ll just tell you that peace of mind comes cheap
here in Pahinga Riverside Retreat House in
Pilar, Bataan. We’ll let the photos do the talking from here.

The guest house bedroom

The Glass house is the one with the best overlooking view of the river.

Fancy taking a bath with a breathtaking view?

The lower glass house bedroom.

The Main House

One of the main house's several bedrooms

There are additional bedrooms in the attic of the main house.

Our thanks to our friend, Lean, for leading us to this
wonderful place. And so, we are duty-bound to pay it forward:

From Pasay or Cubao, ride a bus bound for Mariveles and ask
your conductor to drop you off at the Total gas station in Ala-Uli. It’s a 2-3
hour bus ride and when you start seeing signs that you’re in Balanga, you’re
almost there. Once in Ala-uli, you can do a last-minute shop for supplies in sari-sari
stores nearby. After that, go to the nearest tricycle terminal and ask the
drivers to take you to Pahinga rest house. If that doesn’t work, you can just mention Salaya Farm. If that,
too, doesn’t work, contact Kuya Dondi, the trike driver, through his mobile
phone 09433604523. If tha--- Nah! You don’t wanna hear the rest. Just know that
50 PHP for each person is a fare that’s fair enough to get you there.

What to do in
Pahinga?

Well, aside from sleeping ‘til your eyes fall off [which we
did], wading through the river during this rainy season is fine but it’s best
done during summer when the water is clearest. Morning walks around the surrounding
farms are said to be just as refreshing and photo enthusiasts will also find
beautiful subjects inside and outside of Pahinga. The other houses are also
left open for visitors to see. Best to go here as a group.

Oh, and cook! Bring and cook your own food. Just make sure
to buy all the ingredients beforehand and Pahinga’s dirty kitchen has all the
rest. ALL. THE. REST.

To go to Las Casas, ask Ate Fe, the caretaker to take you
out to the main road. From the main road, you can take a bus/jeepney bound for
Bagac and ask the conductor to drop you off at Las Casas. The fare should be
around 30 PHP for the 30-45-minute ride. The day tour fee through Las Casas’
vintage residences should be around 650 PHP.

On the other hand, a 5-10 minute jeepney or tricycle ride
bound for Ala-uli and you should pass by the gate to Mt. Samat. Just ask the
driver to drop you off there. From there, you can rent a tricycle to the
zipline, supposedly the longest in Luzon, which well then take you to Dunsulan
Falls. Alternatively, for P100 per person [or maybe you can do better than this
deal], the driver can take you up to the Dambana ng Kagitingan. Patriotic
citizens that we are, we chose the latter.

A big cross for all the brave souls who held their ground...

...even when faced with certain defeat.

And I'm buying a stairway to heaven...

The viewing deck at the top of the cross... is wet.

A stunning view from the deck even with the heavy rains.

So, if you have a mind to take a time off from your daily
hassles, or just want to reminisce that 90’s afternoon TV teen drama, remember
that there’s a place in Bataan with a name that is as good as the deed.

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